the end.

Today is my last day in New York. I thought I would make a pro/con list about the city for my last post. Let me preface this by saying Seattle is the best city in the world, hands down, but New York definitely stole a little piece of my heart and I want to live here at some point in my life.

Let's start with the pros:
-The amazing public transportation system. It is so easy to get anywhere you want, and there is zero need for a car.
-The energy. The vibe here is unlike anything else I have experienced in any other city. It simply cannot be put into words.
-Everything happens here. New York is the center for publication, fashion, food, performance art, finance, and a whole myriad of other things.
-The time zone. Everything happens on the East Coast first.
-The food. Some of the best restaurants I have ever been to.
-The culture. Some of the best museums and musicals in the world. There is always something to do or entertain you.
-The parks.
-The hipsters.
-The fantastic street style.
-Everything is just cooler in New York.

The cons:
-Extreme weather. New York has both humid summers and severe, snowy winters. I come from the land of no seasons.
-Everything is more expensive.
-Water from AC units drips on the sidewalk and sometimes you if you're not paying attention. It's nasty.

I'm headed back to Seattle for a few days before I return to LA for rush school and real school. I'm not going to pretend like I am going to keep this blog up to date because I know I have a very busy couple of weeks ahead of me. I will let you know if something stirs me enough to write about it. I am for sure going to pick up regular blogging again when I study abroad in London this spring. I appreciate everyone who found my life interesting enough to pay attention to my ramblings, and I hope everyone has a great end to their summers. Later, New York!

  

trekking across the river

Monday:
After work, I met up with Jen and my mom for a bite before "Mamma Mia," which they had gotten tickets to Monday morning while I was at Us. I loved the show, partly because I did not have to listen to Pierce Brosnan attempt to sing, like in the movie version. I got goosebumps every time the actress who plays the mom sang, her voice was incredible. I thought the actress who plays the daughter was overacting, but this is her first time on Broadway so I'll cut her a little slack.

Tuesday:
My mom realized she left her debit card at the restaurant we ate at the night before, so we had to go back uptown to retrieve it before we could start our day. We took the train to the beginning of the Brooklyn Bridge on the Manhattan side and started our trek across. Even though, it was incredibly hot outside, the views of the city were spectacular and I had a lot of fun doing it. Once we reached Brooklyn, we decided to head to the water and grab lunch at The River Cafe. We shared four amazing appetizers: tuna tartar with avocado and wasabi (which Jen found out the hard way), butter lettuce salad with cheese and tomatoes, scallop ceviche, and octopus with an onion and raisin compote. Everything was beyond delicious! After lunch, we walked to Junior's, which is famous for their cheesecake, and we all split a slice of their classic dessert. We took the train back into the city because Jen and my mom had to get their stuff together and head to the airport. I hailed them a cab and said good-bye, even though I am going to be home on Saturday.

Although the three of us get in little tiffs and some times the sass and attitude can become too much, I loved having my family in New York. We always laugh a lot, even though it usually is at someone else's expense, and this trip was no different. I almost choked on my water at The River Cafe from laughing so hard. Excuse me for being cheesy, I would probably be rolling my eyes if I was reading this on someone else's blog, but I want to thank my mom for all of the amazing meals and great shows. You're the best and I love you, and, Jen, you're okay too.

Brooklyn Bridge

view from the bridge

The River Cafe

Sunday matinee

Sunday:
After we rushed tickets to "Jersey Boys," we met my cousin Brittany for brunch at Petrossian near Central Park. Jen and I each had eggs benedict, which was super yummy, and Brittany and my mom each had French toast. We took a stroll through the park and took some family pictures, before parting ways. My mom kept joking about taking a carriage ride through the park and I had to explain in detail the Lea Michele PETA video Katy showed me awhile ago. That video is for you, Suz, so take notes.

We met Jen's friend Andi, who is an accessories intern at Marie Claire for the summer, outside of the "Jersey Boys" theatre for the matinee. We all really enjoyed the show and the story because all the music was so iconic and recognizable. I had some of those songs stuck in my head for the rest of the day. After the show, we took the train back downtown and Andi took Jen to see her apartment while my mom and I went back to my place to relax. We met back up for sushi in the West Village and got to hear some outrageous and unbelievable stories about Andi's life as an intern. All I can say is I am glad I am on the editorial side of things.

highline

Saturday:
We started out the day at High Line Park. If you have not heard about the High Line, it is a relatively new park that was converted from old train tracks. There is a ton of greenery, cool benches and places to relax, and amazing views of the city. My mom spotted Chelsea Market on our way to the High Line, so we decided to get lunch there. I had a balsamic, chicken sandwich that hit the spot. After lunch, we took the train back to the Nolita area to do some vintage shopping. Jen found a great black dress at one shop, and then we wandered back through SoHo and eventually got Pinkberry in the West Village. We enjoyed our frozen treats and rested our aching feet in Washington Square Park.

We went to dinner at Arturo's in the West Village, which is a famous pizza place and was also on my mom's restaurant list. We got a pizza that was half mozzarella and anchovy and half onion, peppers, and sausage (called Arturo's fiesta). Both were delicious! After dinner, Jen and I met up with Bryce to go out, and we went to Pour House and Bar None in the East Village. We all had a really fun time dancing and singing to 90s cuts.

High Line

cool buildings in Chelsea 

at the High Line (are you kidding me with that height difference?)

JJ wine in Chelsea Market

 

SoHo shopping

Friday:
Jen and my mom both wanted to shop in SoHo, so I took them all around that area. We went into Brandy and I got a neon-pink, cropped shirt and Jen also picked up a few items. I also took them to Zara because they do not have stores in Seattle and they scored some great finds. After shopping for a while we decided to take a break for lunch. We went to Balthazar because it was on my mom's list of restaurants she wanted to go to. We shared a huge pot of seafood stew even though it was super hot and humid. It was very good, even if it wasn't the right choice for the weather. We shopped around a little bit more before heading down to the financial district to shop at Century 21, which is a designer discount store. I have heard great things about Century 21, but I was so exhausted from walking around all day I got overwhelmed and was really not in the mood to deal with unorganized chaos or motivated enough to find a killer deal. You know those dads who are forced to go shopping and eventually find a comfy place to sit and wait it out while the female members of the family shop? I assumed that role.

My mom had been eying a Brazilian food place called Churrascaria Riodizio, so we decided to go there for dinner. They do not have menus, but a prix fixe meal instead. Each person gets to have amazing appetizers at the extensive salad bar, we are talking everything from squid ceviche to sushi (yes, sushi at a Brazilian restaurant). After the starters, the waiters come around with 15 different types of meat for us to try. It was an insane amount of food, but it was excellent. Jen even got me to try a chicken heart, which was actually pretty good. For the most part the meats were normal, like ribs, lamb, steak, chicken and turkey. We all went home completely stuffed.

When we got back to the hotel there was a bit of a scuffle outside, so we positioned ourselves in the lobby to watch the action (so shameless). While we were there, a middle-aged guy and his 22-year-old cousin came by and offered to buy us drinks. The older guy was highly intoxicated and clearly wanted to hit on my mom and just brought the younger kid over to entertain Jen and me. The kid was really nice and engaging, even though none of us can remember his name. He goes to Hobart and William Smith, which is a small liberal arts college that I only know exists because Katie applied there and has told me about her visit. After a drink and hearing all about the wedding they were going to the next day, we decided to make our escape by "going to the bathroom" and did not keep our promise of returning.

really cool antique store "Loopy Mango"

Suz and Jen arrive

Thursday:
After work I took the train down to TriBeCa where Jen and my mom were staying and met them at their hotel. We decided on Mr. Chow for dinner because it is only a few blocks from the hotel and we had all heard amazing things about the food. We each got a different flavored martini: apple, French and lychee. The lychee ended up being the best one, but it was fun to try all three. For dinner we shared dumplings, shrimp in a green, herb sauce and duck. It was all very good, but the duck was by far the best. It was perfectly crisp on the outside, but still tender and juicy on the inside. After dinner we walked around in search of a gelato place for dessert. We ended up going back to the hotel to get a recommendation and one of the doormen told us to go to Odeon. We split a sundae with hazelnut, coffee and vanilla ice cream and carmel and hot fudge sauces drizzled on top. I was exhausted from a long day of work and in a very pleasant food coma, so falling asleep was beyond easy.

Mr. Chow

martinis

inside the restaurant